Lost, mislaid, and abandoned property

The German law governs Fund as part of the German law of property the ownership of lost things and the legal obligation between the owner and the finder. The regulations are contained in § 965 to § 984 BGB.

Loss and Fund

Colloquially means lost, that the owner does not know where the thing is. So as well as the cases of the mere publishing ( the glasses in the apartment, the book of the cabinet) would be recognized. Therefore, the legal jargon defined more precisely: One thing is lost if it is not abandoned, but without possessions. That is, the loser still thinks he is the owner, but can not exercise the actual ruling power over them. One such thing is - also contrary to the colloquial parlance - not yet found if a third party discovers, but only when he takes the case to be well founded new ownership. This shows that finding no actual phenomenon, but an agency for the loser is legal.

The mere inspecting a lost property is not a possession, so one is not legally Finder: " He who receives a lost cause short visit and lies down again immediately, is not Finder and therefore commits no breach of duty. "

Statutory obligation

Between the losers (the Act speaks precisely of those entitled to receive ) and the Finder creates a legal obligation. This obliged the Finder to display the authorized recipient and deliver the Fund. Does not he know that he has a value of more than EUR 10 display the Fund to the competent authority (municipality / police ) or deliver or to keep them. The Beneficiaries owes the finder reimbursement of expenses and the finder's fee. The reward is according to § 971 para 1 BGB of the value of the thing up to 500 € 5% of the added value of 3%, in animals always 3%. If the thing on the premises of a public authority, in the means of transport of an authority or public transport is found, the finder receives only half the reward and also that if the thing is worth more than 50 € ( § 978 para 2 BGB).

The transfer of ownership Finders

With the expiration of six months after notification to the competent authority acquires the Finder ownership of the thing, if it neither the Beneficiaries has become known until then, this has reported to the authority (§ 973 para 1 BGB). If the value of the thing but less than 10 €, so the 6 - month period begins with the date of the find. However, the finder must reveal what was acquired three years according to the rules on unjustified enrichment.

Animals Fund subject to the same deadlines as lost property, but can be passed on after a period of four weeks by the competent authority in relation to the acquisition of property. The animal can therefore be passed on to the finder or a third person, but without this property to acquire the animal. The property acquisition will continue after the 6 - month period.

Treasure trove

A treasure is a thing that has so long hidden situated that their owners can no longer be determined (definition of § 984 BGB). The finder of a treasure already acquired with the discovery hälftiges ownership. The other half of the co-ownership shall belong to the owner of the thing in which the treasure is been hidden, so usually the property owner. This principle goes back to the so-called Hadrian's division.

The conservation laws ( DSchG ) of the German states restrict by there each defined treasure trove regulation of the BGB and define the ownership differently. In the majority of states fall treasure finds in the country, in the minority only when they were discovered by government investigations (usually excavations ). These limitations are confirmed by numerous judgments of the administrative courts.

Flotsam and jetsam

The discovery of flotsam was controlled until 1990 by the beach right. Since then, the general property law applies.

Animals Fund

According to § 90a of the Civil Code provisions for lost property shall also apply to animals. A Fund animal is consequently an animal that is owned, but not abandoned. Competent Authority Fund is the community in which the animal is found. It is optionally makeshift responsible for the safekeeping of the Fund animal, they may be responsible for the welfare of the animal and then must under § 2 Animal Protection Act cause appropriate care measures.

However, most discovered that pets are not owned or unowned, in the sense that is no Fund animals because they either returned to their owners (eg cats) or the owner wanted to get rid of them recognizable ( property task).